The Trick Is to Keep Breathing
by Ryleigh04
Summary: Set prior to 3x13, AU...Andy's whole world changes in a instant.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I promise, I have not given up on 'You Gotta Go...'. I've just got some random ideas bouncing around in my head for a few one and two shots that I need to get out and hopefully that will pave the way for me to continue!

Chapter 1

Finally, there were no more tears. Her eyes had finally run dry and she slowly picked herself up off the bathroom floor. She didn't understand how this could happen, after everything else, why had God chosen to play this cruel joke. What was she going to do? She can't talk to Traci who's had enough to deal with since Jerry's death. And, Sam; the one person she needs to talk to about this, she can't.

Andy stumbled back in to her bedroom and fell in to bed. She reached out and grabbed her phone, which was still where she dropped it an hour ago when she ran and collapsed in the bathroom. There was just one text from her break up buddy, making sure she was OK and clearly she wasn't, but she couldn't tell him that either. Before she could change her mind, she quickly called Frank and asked for the next couple days off. He gave it to her no questions asked which made her positive that he knew Sam dumped her. With the knowledge that she wouldn't have to worry about work for the next few days, Andy shut her phone off and clutching a pillow that still smelled like Sam, rolled over and tried not to think about the call that just changed her life.

_It had been a long hard day and Sam asking for his keys back was really just icing on the cake. All she wanted to do was go relax at home. She had just finished eating a quick dinner when she heard her cell phone ringing in the bedroom, she didn't recognize the number, but picked up anyway._

"_Hello?"_

"_May I speak with Andy McNally?" The female on the other end had a kind voice but it was unfamiliar to Andy._

"_This is she."_

"_Hi Ms. McNally, this is Dr. Keller calling from Toronto General, and I'm calling about your blood test." The doctor explained._

"_Is there something wrong?" Andy asked suddenly nervous_

"_We were asked to re-test all the samples for the upcoming trial and we found something in yours that the technician missed the first time."_

"_Am I sick?" Andy jumped in._

"_No, but it does appear that you are pregnant. We'd like you to come in for some tests to confirm as it has been several weeks since the bloods been taken." Dr. Keller said_

_Andy could hardly breathe; she could feel like blood drain from her face as she fought to hold on to her dinner. She managed to gasp, "Ok, I'll call tomorrow to set up an appointment, thank you." Before bolting to the bathroom and emptying the contents of her stomach and falling to lie on the floor, sobs racking her body._

Andy awoke long enough the next morning to call the hospital and set up an appointment to come in for a test that afternoon and to eat a piece of toast before falling back to sleep for a few more hours until she had to face this new reality. Later, once the doctor's confirmed that was indeed 9 weeks pregnant and given her the necessary vitamins and set her up the required check up appointments, Andy allowed herself to think about how this could have happened. She was on the pill and Sam wore a condom, most of the time, but if she was honest, more times than not recently they had let themselves get carried away and forgotten. She hadn't given it much thought because she was religious about taking the pill and both she and Sam had been tested and were clean. The fact that she was late never really occurred to her because of all the stress, she never dreamed that she would get pregnant, especially now.

"Andy?"

Andy looked up as she was walking out of the hospital into Nick's eyes, "Nick, hi. Um, what are you doing here?"

"I had to take witness statement. What about you? Are you OK?" He asked

It was on the tip of her tongue to say she was fine, "I'm pregnant." She blurted out before clapping a hand over her mouth and letting out a semi-hysterical laugh, "That's the first time I've said that out loud."

Before she could stop herself she confessed to Nick how she had found out and how scared she was and she didn't know what to do. To his credit, Nick did his best to comfort her and finally agreed to keep this to himself until she was ready. But he made her promise to keep him up to date with what was going on and he said he would come with her to the doctors despite her protests. Before dropping Andy off at home and getting back to work he stopped at the corner market to pick up a few groceries for her. She wasn't hungry but she knew she had to eat for the baby, _Sam's baby_, she thought. Once Nick dropped her off, she made a quick lunch and then succumbed to the exhaustion and crawled back in to bed.

The next few days passed in a blur to Andy, she remembered getting out of bed a couple times a day to eat but the constant crying jags and nausea exhausted her and left her with no motivation.

Over at 15 Division, her friends were getting worried. Andy's phone had been turned off for days and she wouldn't answer the door when they knocked.

"Have you tried her dad?" Dov asked Traci, "Or her mom?"

"I asked Oliver to call her dad, but he didn't know where she was or anything. I called over to Social Services and left a message for her mom, but she hasn't called me back." Traci sighed. "I guess she's taking the break up harder than we thought."

"I don't think that's it." Chris said, "I'm mean she is definitely upset, but had already decided that it wasn't worth falling apart, especially with everything else that has happened."

"She could just be sick and the meds knock her out so she can't hear the door." Dov said.

"Wouldn't she have just said that when she asked for the days off? Noelle said that Frank thought she sounded weird on the phone." Gail pointed out.

Sam listened in from around the corner, his eyes followed Nick who kept glancing at his phone and watched as he walked away from the other rookies. Sam followed him and overheard the one sided conversation. "Andy, please pick up the phone. I'm getting really worried, you promised to check in. If I don't hear from you by the time shift is over, I'm coming over and kicking in your door." Nick turned the corner and stopped short when he saw Sam standing there glaring at him.

"Collins. What's wrong with McNally?" Sam all but growled at him.

"Nothing, Sir. She's fine." Nick lied.

"Bull. What's with the message you just left her."

"Oh, I'm her break-up buddy. Just doing my duty and checking in to make sure she's good." Nick's collar was starting to get a little tight, this was ridiculous, he could fight in Afghanistan and not break a sweat, but a glare from Swarek and he was sweating like a schoolgirl before the big dance. "Well, I better get to parade, don't want to be late." He walked away quickly ignoring the stares of the other rookies and Oliver.

"Sammy, brother. What was that about?" Oliver walked over to Sam after parade.

"Overheard him leaving a message for Andy. He was saying that she had promised to check in? Is she sick, have you heard from her?" He asked.

Oliver shook his head as they climbed in to the squad car, "Nash asked me to call Tommy and see if he had heard from her, but he said they haven't talked in weeks."

"Can we stop over, I need to make sure she's OK." Sam asked

"You sure that's a good idea brother." Oliver asked, "I can't imagine she'd be all that welcome to seeing you since you kicked her to the curb." Sam glared at Oliver who threw up his hands in surrender, "I'm just saying. You know you were an idiot so if you aren't prepared to fix it, I think you should leave her alone."

"I love her." Sam pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration, "But I can't say the words when it counts and she deserves to hear them."

Oliver didn't get a chance to respond as dispatch called them to a domestic disturbance.

Hours later Andy managed to pull herself up out of bed holding her head to fight off the wave of nausea and dizziness that consumed her. She turned on her cell phone and began to delete the messages that had accumulated from her friends; in her haze over the past few days she had thought she had heard them pounding at her door but she just couldn't get up to answer it. Andy began to walk slowly to the kitchen to pour a glass of water, thinking she must just be dehydrated, she dialed Nick.

Nick and Chris had been called to the same scene with Oliver and Sam. They had just finished with social services and had placed the father in the back to the squad car to take back to 15 when Nick felt his phone vibrate in his pocket and seeing it was Andy, he held up a hand to Oliver, Sam and Chris. "I have to take this." He jogged a short distance away to answer, "Thank god Andy, I've been freaking out. You promised to you would check in. Is everything OK?"

"Everything is fine, Nick. I promise." Andy gripped the edge of the counter as her vision blurred. She gritted her teeth in concentration and she walked the remaining steps to the cabinet. "I just haven't been feeling all that well."

"Look, I'm going to have Chris drop me off at your place in a few minutes. You don't sound very good." He said.

Andy rose up on her tiptoes to reach a glass, "No, you don't need to do that. Just finish your shift. I'm OK, I -...ahhh." The phone slipped from Andy's grip and clattered to the ground as a sharp pain pierced her stomach and as her world spun and went dark she crumbled to the ground.

"Andy?" Nick said loudly, "What's going on. Talk to me." He began to run back to where his fellow officers were waiting, "Andy!" He shouted again in to the phone but was only met with silence. "Damn it." He hung up and dialed again, but it went straight to voicemail. "We have to go now." He shouted to Chris.

"Slow down Collins, what's going on?" Oliver asked.

"I was talking to Andy, she didn't sound right, she made a sound like she was in pain and then there was a clatter and we got disconnected; I can't get her to answer it again. We have to go over there." Nick explained quickly.

"Let's move." Sam said, running over to his and Oliver's squad car forgetting that Oliver had the keys.

Oliver nodded, "Diaz, you take in Mr. Mason and book him and let Frank know what's going on."

"Yes Sir."

"Come on Collins, let's go." Oliver said to the rookie and they took off after Sam to the car. He sighed when he saw Sam in the drivers seat. "Buckle up and hold on. This isn't going to be a fun ride." He passed the keys to Sam and barely had time to put his seat belt on before Sam had the sirens blaring and the wheels screeching.

"How long have you been seeing Andy?" Sam bit out through gritted teeth.

"What?" Nick asked, holding tightly to the cage in front of him. "I'm not seeing Andy."

"Sure sounded like it to me."

"No, it's not like that. I'm her friend." Nick tried to explain, "She doesn't feel like she can talk to anyone else because of what they are all going through. She didn't want to burden them."

"So, what happened today?" Oliver asked, "Is she sick?"

Nick wasn't exactly sure how to answer that, "Umm, I know she went to the doctors the other day, but as far as I knew she was OK."

"So then why were you so worried that she wasn't answering your calls?" Sam asked through gritted teeth as he swerved through traffic.

Nick really wasn't sure how to answer that, "I just know how she is. She'll pretend she's fine and won't go back to the doctor until someone makes her, so I figured better safe than sorry." He hoped that would appease Sam.

Sam pulled to a screeching halt in front of Andy's building and was out the door before Oliver or Nick could even take off their seatbelts. He was already pounding at the door by the time they reached him. "Andy!" He shouted.

"Let me try her one more time Sammy before you kick the door in." Oliver said to his friend.

Inside they could hear Andy's home phone ringing and her answering machine pick up. "I'm trying her cell again." Nick said. They heard her ringtone through the door, but could not hear any other movement in the house.

"I'm not waiting anymore." Sam said and took stance to kick down the door. He looked at Oliver, who waved a hand in the 'go-ahead' motion and kicked. Andy's door flung open with force and Sam ran in followed by Oliver and Nick.

"Andy." They called as they rounded the corner. Oliver moved to walk down the hallway towards her bedroom, but stopped short at Sam's anguished cry, "Andy!"

They ran into the kitchen where he could see Andy's prone figure on the ground. It frightened Oliver to admit how terrible and pale she looked. Sam knelt next to her and with shaking fingers felt for a pulse, he let out a breath of relief as he felt her heart beating against his fingers. He pulled her in to his arms, stood and began to walk back to the door. "I'm not waiting for an ambulance, lets move."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Sam paced the waiting room, alternating between pinching the bridge of his nose and running his hands through his hair. It had been over an hour since he had run through the hospital with Andy in his arms. He was terrified, even with the lights and sirens that Oliver put on as they sped to the hospital the drive seemed to take forever. Sam had held Andy so tight in his arms whispering in her ear but she never woke up, even when they ran through the hospital corridor shouting for help, she didn't stir. They whisked her away and wouldn't let him go with her. The doctor promised to update him soon, but that was so long ago, what could possibly be taking so long.

"What did you say to the doctor when we first came in?" Oliver asked. He and Nick were sitting down, drinking coffee and while he was pretty sure Sam hadn't noticed anything, he was positive that Collins had whispered something to the doctor.

"Nothing." Nick answered uncomfortably.

"Bull." Oliver whispered back, not wanting Sam to overhear, "You know something about Andy and you don't want Sam to know. What is it? Is she OK?"

"She's pregnant." Nick exhaled, then immediately continued when Oliver's eyes widened to the size of saucers, "You can't say anything. She didn't even want me to know, I just happened to be there when she was coming out of the hospital."

"Wow." Oliver didn't even know what to say.

"I should have gone to see her sooner, she promised she would call and check in. If I had just gone to see her when she didn't answer my call the first time, this wouldn't be happening." Nick said quietly.

Oliver didn't have a chance to respond, "Are you three here for Andy McNally?" The doctor entered the waiting room and the three men ran over to him.

"How is she?" Sam asked nervously.

"She's resting right now, we're keeping her sedated for the next couple hours." He explained.

"Why?" Oliver asked

"She regained consciousness while we were examining her and she became quite upset and her elevated heart rate was putting stress on the baby." The doctor continued despite the sharp intake of breath from Sam, "It appears she has just been suffering from exhaustion and she was slightly dehydrated but I don't see any reason to be concerned. As long as she takes her vitamins and keeps up with her regular OBGYN, there's no reason to think that this will affect the rest of her pregnancy."

"Thank you. When can we see her." Nick asked, glancing nervously at Sam who was looking paler by the second.

"A nurse will come and get you in just a few minutes when we have her settled in her new room."

"Thank you." Oliver held out his hand.

The doctor shook Oliver's outstretched hand, "My pleasure, Officers."

As the doctor walked away, Oliver turned to look at Sam who had taken a seat with his head in his hands. "You alright man?"

"I can't believe this is happening, why wouldn't she tell me?" Sam said, "

"She just found out." Nick said without thinking.

"Of course, she told you." Sam muttered under his breath.

Nick shook his head, "It's not like that, I was leaving the hospital at the same time as she was and I think she was just in shock and blurted it out. She asked me not to say anything until she had time to absorb the information."

"And, why would she tell me anyway. I said awful things to her. She thinks I blame her for Jerry and I left her crying in a damn parking lot!" Sam was so frustrated, if he had found the courage sooner to make things right with her then maybe they wouldn't be here right now. Andy wouldn't have been so stressed that she put herself in the hospital. Maybe then they would be excited and scared together. Because that's what he was right now; excited, scared...scared to be excited.

Truth be told, he hadn't really given much thought to kids before he and Andy got together. Once they did finally get their start after the suspension, he was hesitant to fully trust and give himself to her. What he told her was true, all she wanted was her job and all he wanted was her. It hurt that she had put the job before him and their relationship again, but he honestly meant it when he told her that she wouldn't get rid of him without a fight. He messed up and he knew that. When Jerry was killed, he just felt so lost and he was terrified that he would lose Andy too and he did what he thought was right. But he was wrong and he just hoped he wasn't to late.

When the nurse finally called them back to her room, Oliver stopped Nick from following her and Sam. "Sammy, we're going to get back to the barn, but I'll have one of the rookies drop your truck and a change of clothes off."

"Thanks buddy." Sam called over his shoulder.

"Give him a chance." Oliver said to Nick in answer to his questioning look, "He knows he messed up and maybe this is the chance he needs to fix it."

Nick nodded, "Fine, but I'm bringing him his truck and clothes. I'd like to see for myself that Andy is OK."

Sam hesitated in the doorway of Andy's room and stared at her still form. The nurse had assured him again, that she and the baby were perfectly fine and Andy would probably be waking up soon. Taking a deep breath he found the courage he needed to walk across the room to her bedside and pulled a chair next to her. He took her hand in his and lifted it to his mouth briefly to place a kiss on it.

"Hey." He said softly, reaching his other hand up to brush the hair off her face, "I know you probably can't hear me right now and I promise to say this all to you again when you wake up but I have to tell you that I love you. I'm sorry I didn't say it sooner and I just want you to know that when I told you that you wouldn't get rid of me without a fight, I meant it and I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me. Because if you do I swear to god that I will do everything in my power to make sure you never have to wonder how much I love you. I promise, if you give me another chance I swear you won't regret it and I'm going to make sure you have the life that you deserve. I wish you hadn't had to go through this alone, but you and our child are never going to be alone again."

He sighed and found he was no longer content to sit on the chair, he moved to sit down on the bed, facing her. Sam took one of her hands in his and rested them on her stomach where their child was growing. "So, uh, its me, your dad." He felt awkward talking to their baby that was still inside her, but he swallowed the lump in his throat and brought his other hand to rest on her stomach, "I never thought about having kids of my own. I didn't have the best childhood and I figured I'd do the world a favor and not ruin a child with my issues. But when your mom and I finally got our start I found myself thinking about the future and there were kids in it but I was terrified to let myself hope. I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop and it did when your Uncle Jerry died. I regretted what I said to your mom from the moment the words were out of my mouth, but I was so angry at the world that I didn't know how to fix it. I promise you, that I will fix it and we're going to be a family. I love you and I love your mom and I'll probably make a lot of mistakes being your dad, but I'm always going to be there for you, I promise."

Sam leaned down and pressed a kiss to Andy's forehead, "I love you." He whispered, "I'm going to get a coffee, but I'll be right back." He knew she was still sedated, but he hoped that his words would somehow make their way to her subconscious.

When she finally heard the door click shut, Andy let the tears that had been threatening to fall from the moment Sam started talking, fall as she opened her eyes, "I love you too."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"Hey," Nick said walking up to where Sam was pacing outside of Andy's room, "Is she OK?"

Sam nodded, "She's fine, hasn't woken up yet but the nurse said it should be any minute now."

"Ok, so what are you doing out here?" Nick asked

"I just needed a minute." Sam stopped pacing and leaned back against the wall across from her door. "You can go in and see her if you want."

Nick nodded his thanks, "Here." He handed him a duffel bag and his keys, "Oliver grabbed your street clothes out of your locker."

"Thanks." Sam took the bag and walked down the hall to change.

Nick closed the door quietly behind him when he entered Andy's room; he was surprised to find her eyes open and looking at him, "Hey! Sam said you were still sedated."

"I know. I've been awake for a while, I just wasn't ready to let him see that." Andy said with a sad smile.

He moved to take the seat Sam had vacated next to Andy's bed, "Why's that?"

"He started talking to me, even though he thought I was asleep still and the things he said to me and the baby were just so amazing and I don't think I could handle it if he just said that because he thought I couldn't hear." Andy explained.

"I think that even though he thought you couldn't hear him, he meant every word. Oliver told me that he's been wanting to talk to you for a while, but he just didn't know what to say or how to say it."

"Well he sure picked a hell of a time to man up." Andy gave Nick a small smile. "I don't doubt that he means what he said and that it isn't just about the baby."

"So what's the problem?" Nick asked

"He always means what he says. When he told me that I wouldn't get rid of him without a fight, he really did mean it but that didn't stop him from breaking my heart." Andy shrugged, "I know its not the same thing and that he really is trying to fix things but it doesn't stop me from worrying."

Nick and Andy looked up quickly when the door opened and Sam walked back in, "Your awake!" He tried to smile at her but found he was nervous all of a sudden.

"I better get going." Nick said awkwardly, "Call me if you need anything." He gave Andy a quick hug and nodded to Sam as he walked out of the room.

"Sam."

"Andy." Sam said at the same time.

He moved to sit down next to her once more and gestured for her to go ahead. She cleared her throat and couldn't think of how best to begin. "I'm sorry you had to find out about the baby like this." She blurted out finally.

"It was definitely a shock." Sam agreed, "But I'm not upset about it. I'm just glad you're both ok."

"Yeah." Andy looked down at her hands, "I was awake earlier. I heard what you said."

Sam was surprised; he used to be able to tell when she wasn't really sleeping. "I meant all of it."

Andy smiled sadly, "I know you did." She wiped a tear away that had started to fall, " You don't say anything you don't mean. But that didn't stop you from walking away from our relationship with out a second thought."

"I'm sorry." Sam said again, "I was in such a bad place and I really thought that I was doing the right thing by walking away."

"I don't understand how you could think it was the right thing to do." Andy said somewhat annoyed, "How is leaving me standing in the rain right?"

Sam stood up, "I don't know how to explain it because it doesn't make any sense and I know that."

"Try."

"You said you loved me." Sam started

"I told you that you didn't have to say it back." Andy accused.

"Are you going to keep interrupting?" Sam grinned at her to break the tension and knowing her interruptions were involuntary most of the time.

She smiled sheepishly, "Sorry."

He nodded, "I wanted to say it back, but I can admit now that I was still angry at you for leaving during our suspension and that made it hard for me to fully trust you. I was struggling to also find a balance for us at work; my need to protect you was getting in the way of my own instincts." He held up a hand when he saw her open her mouth to speak, "I'm not saying that anything that you did something to make me feel that way or that it was your fault, but I was still the senior officer and despite your stubborn streak I should have listened to my gut more than yours and did what I thought was right and insisted we do things my way."

Sam was on a roll now, "You run head first in to situations without thinking them all the way through and sometimes you're right, but I wish you would just stop and breathe and think about what you're doing because one day it might be Traci or Oliver telling me that your dead."

He was breathing heavily as he paced and Andy was startled to find his eyes looking oddly bright. "Sam."

"Did it ever occur to you that I might not be able to survive burying you too?" He asked her angrily.

"Sam." She reached out a hand for him and he reluctantly came back to her bedside. "I am truly sorry for making you feel like you couldn't trust yourself and for making you worry that something might happen to me. I know that I can be difficult and unrelenting when I have my mind set on something, but I could never forgive myself if I had this gut feeling and because I didn't act right away someone got hurt."

They sat looking at each other for a long moment, neither entirely sure what to say next. Andy finally broke the silence, "Maybe this is something we'll have to struggle through together and eventually we'll balance each other out." She took his hand in hers as the pieces of the puzzle about his behavior were falling in to place, "I still think that leaving during our suspension was the right thing to do, but I'm sorry it made you feel like you couldn't trust me."

He gripped her hand tightly, almost afraid to hope of where this conversation was going, "I'm sorry I broke my promise and walked away without a fight."

"So where do we go from here?" Andy asked.

"Do you still love me?" Sam asked her not breaking eye contact.

Andy didn't hesitate, "Of course."

He let out a breath and nodded, "Then I think we should try and take things slow for a little bit and ease our way back to normal; or as normal as things get for us."

"Agreed."

"And then, I would really love for us to find a nice house together with a yard for Boo Radley to play in with Junior when he or she is a little bigger." Sam flashed her his dimples.

Andy pulled him in close for a kiss, "That sounds perfect."


	4. Chapter 4

*I'm SOOOOOOOO SORRY for the terribly long wait. I wish I had a better reason other than complete writer's block. I thought I had some good momentum for a while but between finding a good way to finish this story and getting figuring out an ending for "You Gotta Go There To Come Back", I was just stumped! But, finally, this story is over! ...I may end up adding an epilogue at some point, you never know!

Chapter 4

Andy let out a scream and gripped Sam's hand tighter than he ever thought possible, "I hate you so much for doing this to me."

Sam met the nurses eye and suppressed a grin, "I'm really sorry sweetheart; but you're doing great."

"It shouldn't be to much longer." The nurse said making a note in Andy's chart.

Andy collapsed back against the bed as the contraction subsided, "You said that an hour ago!"

The nurse, who had been the one to take care of Andy the first time she was in the hospital and personally witnessed the change in the parents to be in front of her smiled, "But I'm telling the truth this time."

Sam tried to cover his laugh with a cough but was unsuccessful when Andy glared at him. "I'm sorry sweetheart; but look it's almost time to meet junior."

"I wish you wouldn't call her that." Andy said

"Him." Sam retorted

It had been an ongoing debate from the moment Sam had found out Andy was pregnant. Automatically, he had taken to calling their child junior and upon deciding to be surprised as to the gender of their baby, he insisted that his strong swimmers would definitely guarantee that it was a boy. Andy, on the other hand felt sure that their child was a girl. After that first hurdle of finding out she was pregnant and the subsequent hospitalization she (for the most part) felt amazing.

She and Sam were pretty amazing too. It hadn't been easy - they pretty much started from scratch in their relationship and it wasn't always sunshine and flowers. They fought, loudly and often but within the fighting and the arguments; they were able to reach a new level of trust and understanding towards each other.

It had taken a lot of skillful maneuvering on Sam's part (and some pretty fancy talking, if he did say so himself) but he had finally convinced Andy to move in with him the month before and they had sold her condo. She had pretty much already decided that it was time to move in to Sam's house. It was much bigger than her condo and had a great yard and plenty of space and they spent most of their time there anyway; but the final act that made her knew she just had to say yes happened one night when she showed up to his house early for their dinner plans.

_Oliver was leaving as she walked up and he pointed up the stairs with a sly grin on his face. Andy followed where he pointed and walked up the stairs to the second floor of the house and down the hallway to where music was drifting out of one of the guestrooms. Walking in, she gasped and immediately burst in to tears. Sam, and Oliver apparently, had created her dream nursery. She had been folding down the pages of magazines for weeks of ideas for their baby's nursery; but they hadn't done anything with it yet; mostly because of her hesitancy to make a decision on their living arrangements. _

_Sam turned around when he heard her gasp and immediately ran over and pulled her into his arms. "I really hope those are happy tears." He kissed her forehead, "But we can change it if you don't like it." _

_"No!" Andy hiccupped, "Don't change anything, I love it and it's perfect!"_

_"You really like it?" He asked_

_"It's everything I hoped it would be." Andy smiled at him and hugged him close. "And, I think its time I put you out of your misery and told you that I'm moving in."_

_"Seriously?" _

_"Yes, I've been pretty sure for a while now but this just definitely made me 100% positive that this is the right decision for our family." Andy laughed when he gently lifted her off her feet and swung her in a circle. _

Andy was brought back to reality when the next contraction hit and it was by far the worst one, "I really need to push."

"I agree." The doctor said as she walked in to the room. "Let's move Ms. McNally to the delivery room. It's showtime!"

Andy was moved to the delivery room, while a nurse took Sam to put on scrubs. He met her in the delivery room just a few minutes later. "Ready?" He asked, taking her hand in his.

She nodded and began to bring their child into the world.

A short time later Sam pushed open the doors into the waiting room to where Nick, Traci, Oliver and several other friends were anxiously awaiting the arrival of the first McSwarek offspring. They jumped up when they saw Sam.

"How's Andy?" Traci asked immediately

"She's great, they both are." Sam's grin was the biggest any of them had ever seen.

"So which one will it be?" Oliver asked holding out one pink and one blue cigar in each hand.

If it was even possible, Sam's smile got wider and he pulled the blue cigar out of Oliver's hand, "It's a boy. Benjamin Thomas. He's perfect."

Oliver clapped a hand to his back, "Congratulations Sammy. I'm really happy for you two." He handed Sam the small bag he was carrying, "I also picked up what you asked for."

"Thanks Ollie." Sam smiled, "Come on guys, I'll take you over to the nursery so you can see him."

Their visit was quick; after seeing the baby, Nick and Traci stopped quickly to Andy's room to see her but left when Sam and the nurse brought Benjamin to her room. Then it was just the three of them.

"Well, I guess you were right." Andy sighed looking down at her baby and the up at Sam, "Junior's a boy."

Sam laughed softly, "I never get tired of you telling me I'm right." He leaned down and kissed their son lightly on his forehead and leaned in to kiss Andy on her lips. "I love you."

"I love you too." They kissed again, "What's in the bag?" She asked when they broke apart.

Sam set the bag on the bed next to her, "It's something I bought a really long time ago; before Jerry died."

"For me?" Andy asked, honestly not having any idea what he would have bought her.

"Yes." Sam coughed nervously, "It honestly wasn't something that I ever pictured buying until I met you but I knew that it was the right thing to do as soon as I saw it. And, then things got really messed up. Jerry was killed and I just couldn't deal with it. All I kept seeing over and over again was you dying instead of him and I knew that I couldn't survive if something happened to you. And, that's when I made the biggest mistake of my life. I'm just sorry that it took me so long to get my head out of my ass and realize it."

Andy's eye filled with tears while he spoke and the tears fell and she gasped when he pulled out a box from the bag and got down on one knee next to her hospital bed. He flipped open the box to reveal a beautiful diamond ring. "Sam." She whispered.

"I know we did things a little backwards; pregnancy, get back together and then moving in together, but you have honestly made me the happiest man in the world and I will spend the rest of my life making sure you are the happiest woman in the world. So, Andy McNally, will you marry me?" Sam watched her expression carefully and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief when she shook her head and managed to choke out, "Yes, of course."

He stood up and slipped the ring on her finger and kissed her again. Their son let out a tiny squeal and they laughed, "Benjamin is happy too." Sam slid in bed next to his fiance and son and held them both close. He couldn't wait until Andy McNally because Andy Swarek.

The End


End file.
